Chiang Mai Hotel, Guest House for Sleep

Accommodation in Chiang Mai is generally cheap even by Thai standards. All types of lodging are available from inexpensive guest-houses with little or no service to the typical high rise hotels and elaborate garden resorts. The latest boom is Thai-style boutique resorts located near the old city center - several have been built since mid-2005, and offer excellent service in quiet garden settings; most are fairly small with as few as 8 rooms and a pool, and are decorated with Thai crafts and antiques.

Some of the cheapest accommodation may refuse guests who are not also booking a trekking package. Evenings in Chiang Mai are cooler than Bangkok and the south during the dry season, so air-conditioning may be less a priority.

Budget

• 3Sis Bed and Breakfast, 1 Soi 8 Phrapokklao Road +66 53-273243 3sis.bnb@gmail.com - opened in early 2006, this quiet guesthouse in the old city is very comfortable, and tastefully furnished and decorated in Thai style.

• Backpacker House +66 53-811700 or +66 81-9939911 - simple lodging near the airport and university. 6-bed dorms (en-suite and hot water) 170 baht/person; standard rooms from 560-720 baht including breakfast.

• Eagle House, 16 Changmoi Gao Road, Soi 3, +66 53-874126 (fax: +66 53-874366)

• Golden Fern Guest House, 20 Soi 8 Th Phra Pokklao (southeast inner moat) +66 53-277665

• Green Tulip Guest House, 18 Samlan Road (near Wat Phrasing and Sunday "Walking Street") +66 53-278367 - brand new guest house with a restaurant, roof top garden, Internet café and large screen TV in the lobby. Beautifully decorated and designed with elegant wood floors throughout the building. Choice of fan and air-con rooms with shared or private bathrooms, hence prices range from 250-650 baht.

• Hollanda Montri Guesthouse, 365 Charoenrat Road (bit north on same road as The Riverside and Good View) +66 53-242450 - family style guesthouse with a tropical garden on the banks of the Mae Ping River, 10 minutes from the center of town by taxi. Fan/air-con rooms 500 baht.

• Home Place Hotel, 9 Soi 6 Tapae Road. +66 53-276468 offers double-bed rooms and twin-bed rooms with fan or air-con (250-450 baat). All rooms have hot shower and cable television. It's very clean and staff is quite friendly.

• Julie Guesthouse, 7/1 Prapokklao Road Soi 5, +66 53-274355 - familiar and chilly Guesthouse located in a quiet part of the Old City 5 minutes from Tha Phae Gate. Fan rooms with or without bathroom (100-300 baht), restaurant (Thai and Western Food) and Adventure-Tour specialized travel agency.

• Marlboro/Joe Guest House, 138 Sithiwongse Road +66 53-2325989 - clean and cheap guest house, more like a small family run hotel that really makes you feel at home.

• Pachkit House, 8/1 Arak Road Soi 7 - Clean family-run guesthouse/apartment in the Old City. 15 minutes walk to Chiang Mai Ram Hospital and Central Kad Suan Kaew Department Store. Bathroom in every room with hot/cold shower; each room has fridge, TV with cable and free 1024 Kbps ADSL hook-up. There are also a few computers for free Internet use in the café next to reception. Rates from 650-850 baht/day with daily cleaning and sheet change, monthly rental rate also available (starting at 4500 baht). Can be quite noisy, especially in the mornings, due to a large number of barking dogs in the neighborhood.

• Smile (Guest) House 5 Soi 2 Ratchamankha Road, Prasingh +66 53-208661 -2 (fax: +66 53-208663) - rooms 300-450 baht.

• The Garden Guesthouse Chiang Mai, 139 Rachadamnorn Road, T. Pra Singh +66 84-8098768, is situated in the center of the old town. Live music nights including "The chiang Mai Blues Club" every wednesday at 8:30 PM. Free use of their PC, Internet and Wi-Fi for customers.

• The Royal Guest House, Kothchasarn Road, Soi 4 T.ChangKarn, A.Muang +66 53-282460

• Wanasit Guesthouse, 6 Ratchamankha Road Soi 8 - modern, clean guesthouse located in a quiet alley in the historical centre next to the Wat Phra Singh temple.

• Yourhouse Guesthouse 8 Soi 2 Ratvithi Road +66 53-217492 - traditional Thai teak wooden house, conveniently situated in a small lane in the old part of Chiang Mai, just a 5-minute walk from Tha Phae Gate. Excellent restaurant, and offers a variety of traveller services (e.g. tickets, visas). Very friendly staff. Offer TAT-licenced treks.

Mid-range

• Affordable Chiang Mai, Huay Kaew Road +66 48-098768 is a comfortable, clean and convenient place to stay. One month stay from USD320, including motorbike.

• Baan Orapin, 150 Charoenrat Road +66-16164016 - this "boutique B&B" with just 6 rooms is in beautifully restored old Thai house set in a small garden. Air-con, hot water and far more character than any other hotel in this price range. Walking distance to the Night Bazaar and the riverside restaurants. Rates from 1000 baht for a double.

• Central Duangtawan Hotel, 132 Loi Kroh Road. Excellent four-star hotel with Internet rates from around 1800 baht. Probably a little cheaper than similar competitors as it's in the red-light district, but the area seems quite safe and the hotel is of very high quality.

• Chiang Mai Gate Hotel, 11/10 Suriyawong Road (south of the moat) +66 53-203895 -9

• Lotus Hotel, 2/25 Viangbua Road, Tambol Chang-Phuak, +66 53-215376 advertises itself as "The Hub of Chiang Mai's Premier Gay Entertainment Center" (sic). Rooms are individually decorated and have air-con, TV, radio, 'phone, 'fridge, and safe; rates 900-2500 baht.

• Pornping Tower, 46-48 Charoenprathet Road +66 53-270099 (fax: +66 53-270119) offers not only an amusing name, but slowly fading grandeur at affordable prices. Located near the Night Bazaar, the hotel has a pool and the Bubbles disco, among the most popular in Chiang Mai - and a source of some noise pollution if trying to sleep. The newer and quieter Tower Wing is a bit more expensive than the older Front Wing. 1,000 baht and up (with breakfast).

• Raming Lodge, 17-19 Loi Kroh Road, T. Chang Klan, A. Muang +66 53-271777 (fax: +66 53-270039) - great boutique hotel between the night market and the old city. Unique Lanna architecture. No swimming pool. Food at the restaurant is reasonably priced as are the massages (Thai massage 300 baht/hour). Great place to stay with prices starting at 1,800 baht (Internet rates start at 850 baht).

• River View Lodge, 25 Charoenprathet Road Soi4 +66 53-271109-10 - overlooking the Ping River. All rooms are twin, decorated in Northern Thai style with individually controlled air-conditioning. Private shower, telephone and personal safe. Has a beautiful tropical garden with several intimate pavilions, patios and riverside swimming pool. Less than 10 minutes Walking distance to the Night Bazaar. Rates from 1,450 baht for River Side room with balcony.

• TaNiTa (Riverside) Resort, 22 Chonpatan Road, A. Sarapee +66 81-8846334 (fax: +66 53-892110) - Northern Lanna Thai style from teak with beautiful garden a hotel mainly visited by foreign tourists because very quiet and private place, in a good location between the Ping River and Baan Tawai. Some rooms offer wonderful mountain and river views. It's a good mid-range option with prices starting at 1,200 baht for River Side room with balcony.

• YMCA International Hotel, 11 Mengrairasmi Semsuk Road +66 53-221819 - tucked away in an area northwest of the moat, the hotel is just a 10 minute tuk-tuk ride away from the Night Bazaar and many tourist venues.

Splurge

• Chedi Chiang Mai, 123-123/1 Charoen Prathet Road, Tambol Chang Klan, Amphur Muang, Chiang Mai 50100 +66 (0) 53 253 333 - a new stylish, modern design hotel located on the banks of the Mae Ping River on the grounds of the former British Consulate. Just a short walk from the Night Market and close to the inner city. 84 deluxe rooms and club suites, all with a private courtyard it also features a fitness and health club, 2 bars, a restaurant featuring Thai, Indian and Western cuisine, a spa and an outdoor swimming pool. Rates start at 10,400 baht.

• D2, 100 Chang Klan Road, Tambol Chang Klan, Amphur Muang, Chiang Mai 50100 +66 5399 9999 - just outside the city walls right next to the Night Bazaar, probably more convenient than the Oriental or Four Seasons a way outside of town. Most of the sights are within walking distance (not a short walk, but a comfortable walk). Rates over 3,000 baht.

• Four Seasons Resort Chiang Mai, Mae Rim-Samoeng Old Road +66 53-298181 (fax: +66 53-298189) - set in the lush and tranquil countryside amid working paddy fields and water buffalo (the downside of this being, obviously, a less than central location). Featuring a spa and Thai cooking classes within its grounds, if it wasn't for all the mystical temples and fabulous bargains to be found within Chiang Mai, you might never want to leave. If you can afford it, look into the residences, otherwise the garden rooms are equally spectacular and well worth the 17,000 baht they start at - if you can foot the bill.

• Lotus Hotel Pang Suan Kaew, 21 Huay Kaew Road (northwest corner of the moat) - rates 2000-6000 baht.

• Mandarin Oriental Dhara Dhevi, 51/4 Chiang Mai - Sankampaeng Road Moo 1 T. Tasala A. Muang +66 53-888888 - done in the traditional Lanna style of Northern Thailand, this resorts spreads across 60 acres of serene, natural landscapes, incorporating picturesque rice paddies, tropical hardwoods and exotic plantations. The resorts also includes a spa, cooking class, kids club, fitness center, as well as a cultural center. It's truly a unique experience, but the resort caused some local controversy when it built a 'fake' temple based on one of Thailand's most holy sites in its grounds.

• Pacific Mansion (long-term-splurge), 16 Hassadhisewee Road, T.Changphuak (northwest of the moat) +66 53-404515 is within walking distance of the "Central" shopping mall and a ten-minute tuk-tuk ride away from the Night Bazaar. Popular with many Japanese tourists.

• Viangbua Mansion (long-term-splurge), 3/1 Viangbua Road, Chang Puek, Muang +66 53-411202 - offers deluxe serviced apartments for daily, weekly and monthly rental. Perhaps one of the most expensive housing options in the city at a monthly rate of 12,000 - 100,000 baht, but they do offer a wide range of services and some degree of security. Located in a somewhat remote northwest area of the city.

From: Wikitravel